“Huh?”
What did that mean?
“Going to the military… means breaking up?”
Breaking up with who? What was this all about?
I couldn’t wrap my head around Bbi Bbi’s words.
“Woof! Woof-woof!”
‘That’s all I know! But, wow, you really understand us, huh? Gimme some of those treats from earlier.’
Bbi Bbi’s attention was laser-focused on the snacks tucked away in my bag.
“Didn’t you hear anything about, like, getting exempted or not going at all?”
“Woof!”
‘Treats!’
Ugh, that’s the problem with these guys.
They don’t care about anything except food.
“Come on, think harder…”
I was about to press further when Taehwan returned, cutting off any chance to dig deeper.
‘Going to the military means breaking up? What does that even… Does it mean leaving the dog behind?’
If it was about going to the military, it made sense in a way.
If someone enlisted, they wouldn’t see their dog for a while.
‘Did I get it wrong?’
Maybe I’d jumped to conclusions because of Han Jungwoo’s name.
“Thanks for helping out today. Get home safe!”
“No, thank you. It was fun. See you on set!”
After parting with Taehwan, I climbed into the car where Hayoon was waiting, Jaden trotting beside me.
“How’d the shoot go?”
“Decent enough. You must’ve been bored waiting, huh?”
“Nah, it was fine.”
“Alright, you head inside now.”
Catching Hayoon sneaking glances at Jaden, I quickly ushered the pup into his crate.
“Whine…”
‘But I’m cute…’
“I know you’re cute. Still not happening.”
Maybe because of our earlier tussle, Jaden went in without a fight this time, settling down quietly.
“Haa… Was I wrong?”
For a moment, I thought I’d found a way to send Han Jungwoo off to the military… but maybe not.
“Grff?”
‘What’s wrong? Did I mess up?’
Noticing my sour expression, Jaden shot me a worried look from his crate.
“Nah, you did great.”
I slipped my fingers through the bars and gave his nose a playful poke.
“Tonight, we’re going all out with beef.”
“Woof! Woof-woof!”
‘Heck yeah!’
At the mention of beef, Jaden spun in excited circles inside his crate.
“The dog… understands you?”
Hayoon, watching me banter with Jaden, asked cautiously.
“Haha, just talking to myself. You know how it is with pet owners.”
Worried he’d think I was nuts, I flashed a grin and changed the subject.
“Hey, Hyung, wanna eat at my place tonight? We’re having a beef party.”
I’d already planned a celebratory dinner with Kyungho to mark the start of the new project, and I figured Jaden could get a share too.
“Huh? Oh, no, I’m good…”
Hayoon hesitated, politely declining.
“What? It’s beef.”
Refusing beef? Unheard of.
“This isn’t some everyday chance! I blew my entire month’s allowance on this.”
“No, really, I’m fine…”
“You didn’t eat anything during the shoot, did you?”
I’d at least had drinks and desserts on set, but Hayoon?
Probably nothing.
“You must be starving, Hyung. It’ll be late by the time you drop me off and head home. Come on, join us!”
I kept nudging him on the drive home.
“Remember how you grabbed that bouquet for me during the last shoot? I was so touched, I wanna treat you to a meal. Please, Hyung, say yes!”
“Alright… just for today, then.”
After relentless coaxing, Hayoon finally caved.
“Exactly! No need to feel awkward. Just think of it like eating at your grandma’s house in the countryside.”
I dozed off in the car for a bit, and when I woke up, we were already home.
“Come on in! Uncle! We’re here!”
One hand clutching Jaden’s crate, the other dragging Hayoon by the arm, I burst into the animal hospital.
“You’re back?”
Kyungho emerged from inside, hearing my voice.
“This is my manager, Hyung. I invited him to our beef party. That’s cool, right?”
“Yeah, nice call. It’d be rude to send him off after coming all this way.”
“Oh, this is my uncle.”
“Nice to meet you, sir!”
Hayoon, spotting Kyungho, bowed a full ninety degrees and greeted him loudly.
“Pleasure’s mine. Must be tough looking after this kid.”
“No, sir! Hyunjae’s a good kid.”
Hayoon, stiff as a board, looked like a nervous son-in-law meeting his in-laws for the first time. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hyung, relax. No need to be so tense.”
“Yeah, I don’t bite. You’re the saint putting up with this troublemaker—I should be the one taking care of you.”
“No, really, it’s nothing!”
Kyungho tried to lighten the mood with a playful jab, but Hayoon was still rigid as ever.
“Woof! Woof!”
“Alright, alright, I’ll let you out. Hyung’s a bit scared of you, so I’ll take you to my room for a bit.”
Unable to wait any longer, Jaden was yapping to be let out. I released him in my room and headed back to prep dinner.
“Should we call Jiwon too?”
“I did, but he says he’s busy.”
“Busy? That jobless guy?”
“No idea. Says he’s not the type to move for ‘just beef’ or whatever.”
“What kinda beef is he eating to act so high and mighty?”
Well, I guess for a guy like him, beef’s probably old news.
“Oh, did the CEO tell you? It’s just me and my uncle living here.”
“Yeah, I heard.”
“Cool, you knew.”
“I, uh… I live alone too.”
“You’re on your own? Then chill, Hyung, make yourself at home!”
Hayoon was standing awkwardly, unsure what to do, so I tried to put him at ease.
“Need help with anything?”
“Nah, you’re a guest.”
“Just sit tight. Hyunjae, hurry up and carry this.”
“Yessir!”
Following Kyungho’s orders, we whipped up an impressive spread in no time.
“Wow, looks delicious. Let’s dig in—”
“Wait, gotta take some to Jaden first.”
“Oh, right.”
I almost forgot the star of the show, the whole reason we got the beef.
“Be right back.”
I sliced some of the freshly grilled beef into small pieces, plated it, and headed to my room.
Jaden was already at the door, nose twitching at the scent.
“Pant, pant, woof!”
“Fast little guy, aren’t you? Here, you earned this today.”
The second I set the plate down, Jaden buried his face in it, devouring the beef without even pausing to breathe.
“Slow down, buddy. People’ll think I starve you. It’s that good, huh? Man, if I were still a dog, I’d be jealous of humans hoarding all this deliciousness.”
One of the biggest shocks after becoming human was realizing how much good food there was in the world.
All we got as dogs was kibble—talk about unfair.
“Eat slowly, okay?”
I gave Jaden a gentle pat on the head and headed downstairs.
The grill was sizzling, smoke rising steadily, and Kyungho’s tongs were a blur as he flipped the meat.
“Eat up, lots to go around.”
“Y-yes, thank you.”
Hayoon’s bowl was already piled high with beef.
“You gotta eat a lot to maintain that build. You work out, don’t you?”
“Uh… yeah.”
“Knew it.”
I’d suspected as much.
When I first asked what he did, he dodged the question, so I stopped prying about his personal life. But that physique?
No way it came naturally.
“Stop fattening him up, Uncle. Hayoon’s gonna choke at this rate.”
“Fattening? I’m just looking out for the guy working with you. Try this too.”
Kyungho pushed a side dish toward Hayoon.
“Oh? Is that from the grandma next door?”
“Yup. She dropped off a whole tub since you like it.”
“Hyung, try it. It’s seriously good!”
Living in the countryside meant close neighbors, and we often shared tasty side dishes like this.
“It’s… delicious.”
“Right?”
“You said you live alone, right? I’ll pack some for you to take home.”
“No, no, it’s fine!”
“We’ve got tons of side dishes. The aunties and grandmas around here keep us stocked.”
After some back-and-forth, Hayoon finally nodded.
“Well… just a little, then, please.”
“No ‘just a little.’ No more arguing—eat up.”
Hayoon ate quietly after that, and Kyungho kept the conversation light, avoiding anything too personal.
“Thanks for the meal.”
“Come back anytime. Must be rough hauling this troublemaker around.”
“Troublemaker? Come on!”
“Where’s the guy who was crying for help not too long ago?”
“That was ages ago!”
It wasn’t that long ago, so I couldn’t argue back.
“Hyung, drive safe!”
“Thank you!”
Hayoon bowed a full ninety degrees again, this time clutching a container of side dishes.
As he drove off, Kyungho watched and muttered, “That guy… he’s a lonely one, isn’t he?”
“Yeah.”
His face didn’t show much, but I could sense the emotions beneath it—the quiet gratitude for these small moments of connection.
“Be good to him.”
“I already am.”
I was genuinely thankful for Hayoon, who quietly did his job so well.
“How’d the shoot go with Jaden?”
“Went great.”
The shoot was fine; the problem was I didn’t get the answers I wanted.
“Uncle, when people go to the military, they say goodbye to their pets, right?”
Not ready to let it go, I checked with Kyungho.
“Goodbye?”
He looked puzzled.
“You know, like, ‘If I go to the military, we’re done’ kinda thing?”
“Huh? That’s something girls say when they break up with guys before enlistment.”
“What?”
“Yeah, a lot of girls can’t wait, so they end things when the guy enlists.”
Girls say that to guys?
Then what was Bbi Bbi talking about? Dogs don’t lie like humans do.
“And who says that to a pet? Usually, it’s more like, ‘I’ll be back soon, so be good.’”
Kyungho was right.
Why would anyone tell a pet they’re breaking up when they’ll see them again and stay together for life?
That realization hit me, and I bolted to my room, where Jaden was sprawled out on the bed, buried in blankets.
“Hey, wake up.”
“Ugh…”
Exhausted from the trip to Seoul and running around, Jaden barely opened his eyes, giving me a grumpy look.
But I was too impatient to wait.
“That owner of Bbi Bbi we met earlier… is it a girl?”
“Woof? Woof-woof!”
‘What, you didn’t know? She brags all the time about how much she loves her.’
I’d had a hunch, and there it was.
“So, Bbi Bbi’s owner isn’t Iron—it’s Iron’s girlfriend.”
It all clicked.
Iron was helping take care of his girlfriend’s dog, and the “breaking up” comment came from her, about him enlisting.
‘No wonder he wants to dodge the military.’
Raising his girlfriend’s dog like it was his own and even showing it off publicly?
That showed how serious they were.
“Thanks, buddy. Go back to sleep.”
I gently stroked Jaden’s soft fur, and he drifted back to sleep in no time.
‘Now that I’ve found the link between Iron and Han Jungwoo, it’s time to start planning how to send Jungwoo off.’
Hmm so Taehwan brought Iron’s dog?
Im a bit confused.
Anyway, feels like the TL improve or smoother?
Thanks for the chapter!🍀